This memorandum is the second in a series of essays examining the legal basis for current or potential U.S. military operations or other uses of the military. This is not an official legal memorandum; however, the format and analysis are representative of the legal advice that would be rendered in the situation described. The content of this review is not based on any actual legal review or on any classified information; all facts are drawn from publicly available sources or are (stated) assumptions of the author. The law applied to those examined facts is real. As former judge advocates, the authors will draft these documents to illustrate the kind of advice they would have given their commanders in each situation. The Former JAG Working Group offers it in the hope that everyone who reads it will ask whether current or future uses of the United States military are supported by comparable legal analyses and, if not, why not.
This memorandum analyzes the Department of Justice, Office of Legal Counsel’s memorandum on judge advocates serving as immigration judges, including implications with respect to the Posse Comitatus Act.
Former JAG Working Group, prepared by Major General (ret.) Steven J. Lepper, retired Air Force judge advocate.
The mock operational legal review follows:
